
16. Mattel
There’s hardly any girl or woman who is not aware of the ubiquitous Barbie doll made famous by Mattel. Incidentally, the Barbie doll became so well-known throughout the world that most people therefore came to associate Mattel with beauty. However, Ruth and Elliot Handler and Harold Matson, who established Mattel in 1945, basically produced picture frames in the beginning.
The trio started with creating picture frames and dollhouse furniture in a garage in Southern California. Later on, they diversified to making dollhouses from leftover materials. Matson could not continue working as a result of ill-health and eventually sold his stake to Elliot Handler. Ruth, Elliot’s wife, filled in Matson’s shoes.
Mattel became a corporation in 1955, and the first Barbie doll came out in 1959. Did you know that doll went on to become the firm’s best-selling toy to date? Today, Mattel is the world’s biggest toymaker with a net valuation of $10 billion.